Chocolate. The New Coffee. (You Wish.)

Just How Much Caffeine is in Chocolate?

Would You Like a Side of Chocolate with That?

In a perfect world, wouldn't it be fantastic to order one's breakfast with a side of chocolate? Instead of "Decaf or Regular?" we were asked "Dark or White?" There would be carafes full of liquid chocolate to help yourself to and no meal would be complete without a cupful? Caffeinated buzz and clearer thoughts from chocolate? Who wouldn't want that? The reality is that the facts are blurred and rumors and myths seem to abound regarding how much caffeine is in chocolate. While we'd like to report there's a lot more than there is, we've gotta give you the real deal. Which means, if you'd like to replace your coffee caffeine fix with a wedge of chocolate, you're probably out of luck. However, it is true that there is caffeine in chocolate, and as with coffee, the breakdown comes back to the beans. Who doesn't love a good connection between coffee and chocolate anyway?

How Much Caffeine is in Chocolate? A Look at the Beans.

We're going to get all scientific on you momentarily, but stick with us. A cocoa bean has about 0.1% and 0.7% caffeine. Generally you'll find about 0.2%. A coffee bean, on the other hand has about 1.2%. (Unless, of course, you're talking robusta coffee, and then you can figure in 40% to 50% more caffeine!) But, back to the chocolate. Cocoa beans are separated from their husks and broken into pieces. The pieces, known as nibs, are made up of cocoa butter and cocoa solids. Cocoa solids equal the caffeine source. The higher amount of cocoa solids in a piece of chocolate (think dark), the higher the caffeine content.

Caffeine in Chocolate Bars

Since we know that at a very basic level, the darker the chocolate, the higher the caffeine level, you can begin to grasp what this means for your favorite chocolate bars. The more caffeine you want to intake, the higher percentage of dark chocolate in your bar you need to aim for. Similarly, if you're trying to figure out how much caffeine is in chocolate in an effort to eat chocolate and avoid caffeine, then you need to aim for the more milk chocolate bars and white chocolate bars to be even safer. Curious about your favorites?

Chocolate

Serving Size

Caffeine Mg/Serving

Kit Kat

1 package

7.9

Kisses

9 kisses

11.2

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

2 cups

5.3

Cadbury Royal Dark Egg

1 egg

26.3

Dove Bliss Bar

6 pieces

31.8

Chocolate Syrup

2 Tbsp.

5.4

Coffee

Serving Size (Ounces)

Caffeine Mg/Serving

Drip Coffee

8 oz

107

Espresso

1.5 oz

77

How Much Caffeine is in Chocolate? Not Much.

Bottom line, if you're after a caffeine jolt, chocolate isn't gonna cut it unless you eat alot. The more you want, the darker you need to go, and to avoid it: think white chocolate or the light milky varieties. Our suggestion? Drink a cup of coffee and eat a square of dark chocolate. Can't beat that.